World Book Day

 

 

World Book Day or World Book and Copyright Day is a yearly event on April 23, organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), to promote reading, publishing and copyright.

 

The connection between 23 April and books was first made in 1923 by booksellers in Catalonia as a way to honour the author Miguel de Cervantes, who died on this date.

 

In 1995 UNESCO decided that the World Book and Copyright Day would be celebrated on 23 April, as the date is also the anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, as well as that of the birth or death of several other prominent authors.

Best of Shakespeare

View : Literary stamps

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Alice in Wonderland on stamps…

 

Date of Issue  - 6 January 2015

2015 marks the 150th anniversary of the classic children’s novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, to celebrate this literary milestone, Royal Mail issued set  a set of stamps on 6 January  . Alderney Post will issue stamps on 6 February 2015.

 

To celebrate the 150th anniversary of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, a series of stamps have been created to illustrate classic moments from the story.

Stamps from  Alderney Post

Date of Issue : 5 February 2015

This set consists of six items that depict different episodes from this fascinating story. The issue is to be released and put into circulation on the 5^th of February.Keith’s amazing imagination and brilliant illustration skills have resulted in a truly outstanding stamp set which brings to life many of the famous and fascinating characters created by Lewis Carroll that have enthralled children and adults across the decades.

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KARNAPEX 2015

19 January 2015 - Day 4

Fourth and last day of exhibition observed as "Swatchchta Diwas" marked the culmination of four day long Philatelic Exhibition. Valediction ceremony was held in the evening in presence of Shri Vajubhai Vala, Hon’ble Governor of Karnataka.

On the occasion three special covers were released by Hon’ble Governor Shri Vajubhai Vala, Chief Postmaster General, Karnataka Circle, Shri M S Ramanujan and other guests on dais. The release function was followed by Prize Distribution.

Second Special Cover was on 100 Years of Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FKCCI).

Third cover was on 150 Years of Allahabad Bank. Allahabad Bank, a nationalised bank with its headquarters in Kolkata is the oldest joint stock bank in India. On 24th April 1865, a group of Englishmen at Allahabad founded Allahabad Bank. By the end of the 19th century it had branches at Jhansi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Bareilly, Nainital, Calcutta, and Delhi. Allahabad bank is celebrating 150 years of its establishment.

Ms. Sanvi Suresh (8 years) won Large Silver Medal and CPMG trophy for best exhibit in youth class for her one frame exhibit on ‘The Story of Penguins’.

Courtesy – Indian Philately Digest

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450th birth anniversary of William Shakespeare

 

Date of Issue : 21 November 2014

Vatican Post has released a special commemorative stamp on occasion of the 450th anniversary of the birth of English poet and dramatist William Shakespeare.

This year marks the 450th anniversary of the birth of English poet and dramatist William Shakespeare, considered one of the greatest literary figures of all time. Little is known about his personal life, but we know that he was born in Stratford where he spent the first and last years of his life.

He went to London to search for greater fortune where he became well known as an actor, author and theatre director. His works have remained with us and been celebrated down through the centuries following his death. The heritage of his work is celebrated and translated in every language and performed on stages around the world.

His great skill consisted in understanding the needs of the public by staging complex dramatizations of his characters. The characters were so real that they seemed like a mirror image of the men and women of all times thanks to Shakespeare’s profound knowledge of the varying disposition of human nature.

The Philatelic and Numismatic Office is marking the celebration with an 0.85 cent postage stamp on a sheet with ten values. The face of Shakespeare appears to be in a curious position and he has a flower in his hand.

Stamp on Synchronized skating from Finland

Marigold IceUnity - synchronized skating team from Helsinki, Finland

Date of Issue : 19 January 2015

Here is a new beautiful  stamp  to be issued by Finland on the 19^th of January, 2015.This issue is  dedicated to the World championship skating team Marigold.

Marigold IceUnity are a senior-level synchronized skating team from Helsinki, Finland, representing the figure skating club Helsingin Luistelijat. Coached by Anu Oksanen and Katariina Rundberg, they are four-time World Champions and currently ranked first in the world by the International Skating Union.

Helsingin Luistelijat also fields the Musketeers at the junior level, Starlights at the novice level, Sunlights at the juvenile level and Creme De Ments at the adult level.

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New stamps from Poland

 

Turkish-Polish - Joint Issue

600 years of Turkish-Polish diplomatic  relations

 

Date of Issue : 28 November 2014

Polish Post issued a beautiful souvenir sheet on 600 years of Turkish-Polish diplomatic relations". It is a joint issue by Poland and Turkey.

 

450th birthday of William Shakespeare celebrated by Polish Post

Date of Issue : 19 November 2014

On occasion of 450th birthday of William Shakespeare Polish Post released a special stamp and  postal stationery. The stamp depicts of the illustrations to the works of this great writer.

Shakespeare’s birthday is celebrated in Stratford-upon-Avon and around the world every April, and this year is bigger than ever as Shakespeare turns 450 years young. Here in Stratford the streets were overflown with music, pageantry and drama as the birthday weekend brings together performers, artists, and ambassadors from around the world in a vibrant celebration of the life and works of William Shakespeare. 

Postal stationery

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Vadophil

Latest issue of Vadophil, No. 140, Quarterly News Bulletin of Baroda Philatelic Society is out. For details pleas visit Baroda Philatelic Society, Email: info@vadophil.org or visit website : www.vadophil.org

 

KARNAPEX 2015 , Bangalore ( 16th to 19th  January 2015)

For dealer’s booth application form for Karnepex2015 Please contact  at the below address  :

Assistant Director (BD)

For Chief Postmaster General

Karnataka Circle, Bangalore-560 001

Ph . 22392537 / 22353393

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New stamps on Light Houses

 

Iceland Post issued a set of  stamps on Lighthouses . This issue consists of two stamps that depict the most famous and old lighthouses of the country. The stamps were released and put into circulation on the 11^th of September.

The Dyrhólaey lighthouse. The first lighthouse in Dyrhólaey was erected in 1910. This was a Swedish ironframe lighthouse, the first of its kind to be built in Iceland. In 1927 a concrete lighthouse was erected in the island. It is 12.7 m in height, 123 m above sea level and fitted with a Swedish cylindrical lantern, 4,7 m in height, with a catadioptric revolving lens, 1000 mm

in diameter, using gas lighting. The lighthouse was powered by a lighting machine in 1964. Architect Guðjón Samúelsson made the first design which was later modified.

The Akranes lighthouse. There are two lighthouses on Skipaskagi in Akranes. The older one is a concrete tower which was constructed in 1918. The more recent lighthouse was erected in 1943–1944 based on design by engineer Axel Sveinsson. It was taken into use in 1947. Gas lighting was used at first, the light being amplified by a 500 mm catadioptric lens.

In 1956 the lighthouse was powered by electricity. The Swedish lantern is 3,5 m in height. The Akranes lighthouse is a conical tower, 19,2 m in height and stands on a concrete octangular base.

Sturla Thordarson – Great Poet and Historian from Iceland

ligh

Date of issue : 11 September 2014

Iceland Post issued another commemorative stamp on 11th September to mark the 800^th anniversary of its great writer – Sturla Thordarson. This talented person was also a chieftain, a poet and an historian.

The main sources on his life are to be found in the Saga of Icelanders which he himself composed. He was one of the most powerful men in Iceland and witnessed many of the dramatic events that he later described. Sturla was the nephew of Snorri Sturluson.

After Snorri’s execution in 1241 Sturla became the one of the most influential leaders of the Sturlungs who sought his advice and support. His power base was mainly around Breiðafjörður in the west. Sturla wrote about the two main battles in the Age of the Sturlungar: the battle of Örlygsstaðir 1238, in which he himself participated, and the burning of Flugumýri in 1253.

His accounts of these events are among the most terrifying and dramatic composed in the 13th century. Sturla excels in describing characters, battle scenes and dreams and prophecies predicting major events. Sturla is reputed to have written the saga of Grettir the Strong and other sagas. The stamp motif is the Saga of Hákon King of Norway which Sturla wrote, a stylized Viking helmet and a quill point.

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Stamp on Spanish language

 

 

Date of Issue : 5 June 2014

Spanish Post issued a commemorative stamp in promotion of Spanish language on 5th June 2014. Spanish Post, Correos is involved in promoting the Marca España and has issued this stamp dedicated to the ‘Ñ’ of the Spanish language with all the features of the series: ‘Ñ’ as a watermark, the distinctive colours of Marca España and the incorporation of a vignette into the design. The stamps also display the spines of two of the most famous BOOKS written in the Spanish language, Don Quijote by Cervantes, and The Time of the Hero by Mario Vargas Llosa.

The strongest heritage Spain has, and the one most internationally widespread today, is the Spanish language, which is growing every day in all its many forms: as a native language, a studied language, as a vehicle of cultural diffusion, as an international language of communication second only to English and also as the language of intercontinental economic exchanges.

It is the second most used language in the world, after Chinese, with some 456 million native speakers. It is clear that this continued growth – Spanish is now the third most used language on the Internet – stems not only from the interest which the Hispanic culture inspires in the rest of the world, with its long history and a wide range of literature which has brought forth a significant number of Nobel laureates and recipients of the Prince of Asturias and Cervantes awards. It is also down to the important role being forged by economic and working relations between the Hispanic sphere and the rest of the world. It could be said that the Spanish language is the country’s foremost industry.

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News from Philippines

ASEAN stamp design competition introduced by PHLPost

 

The Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost) launches a nationwide stamp-designing contest with the hope that the country’s entry will be chosen as the official stamp design to welcome the “ASEAN Economic Community” on 2015.

Three entries from the contest shall be chosen and winners will receive PhP5,000 as first prize; PhP3,000 as secondprize; and PhP2,000 as third prize. PHLPost shall send the first prize winning design to Thailand as the Philippine Official Entry to the “Joint Issue of ASEAN Community Commemorative Stamp.” The prize for best design is USD1,000 while the prize for best postmark design is USD500.

“This contest aims to realize the commitment of member-countries to issue a set of joint stamps themed ‘One Vision, One Identity, One Community’,” says Postmaster General Josie Dela Cruz.

The contest, which will run until September 15, 2014, is open to high school and college students, artists, and other interested parties. Entries must be made on a white illustration board sized 18 inches by 18 inches. Rendering should be by pastel on paper or canvass, oil, or acrylic. Computer-generated artwork and photographs will not be allowed. A brief narrative interpretation should accompany submitted entries.

Entries will be judged based on originality, relevance to the contest’s theme, visual impact, and artistic method.

Entries may only be submitted via Domestic Express Mail Service or Express Pouch Service addressed to the ASEAN Community Commemorative Stamp Design Contest, Philippine Postal Corporation, Post Shop, Philately and Museum Division, 3rd Floor, Manila CPO Building, 1000 Liwasang Bonifacio, Manila.

Interested participants are enjoined to contact the Special Project Officer, Post Shop, Philately and Museum Division at +632-527-0132 or +632-527-0108.

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Dream of the Red Chamber – Chinese masterpiece on stamp

China National Philatelic Corporation  issued  a souvenir sheet on 21st June 2014  to  commemorate Dream of the Red Chamber, a Chinese masterpiece .

The novel Dream of the Red Chamber, also known as The Story of the Stone, initially contained only 80 chapters and was circulated in manuscript copies until its 120-chapter printed version was published. It is considered a milestone in the history of Chinese classical novels and a masterpiece in Chinese and world literature. Its author, Cao Xueqin, spent 10 years writing the novel based on his own life experience. The novel depicts the rise and decay of the Jia clan and the love tragedy between Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu, giving readers a full picture of social life in the late period of feudal China.

This set of stamps depicts traditional paintings by contemporary Chinese painter Dai Dunbang. The souvenir sheet depicts the scene that the spirit of Baoyu visits the Great Void as described in Chapter 5. With illustrations, comments, and songs, the chapter predicts the unfortunate destinies of all maidens in the Grand View Garden and the decay of the Jia clan. From the perspective of plot development, the chapter sets the main tone of the novel: reflecting the reality with fantasy. From the perspective of artistic conception, the chapter serves as an outline of the entire novel.

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Forthcoming Exhibition

ODIPEX 2014

9th State level philatelic exhibition ODIPEX 21014, organized by  Deptt. of Posts, Odisha Circle will be held from 22 –24 August 2014 at Bhubaneshwar. The last date of application is 25 July 2014. For details contact In-charge philatelic Bureau, Bhubaneshwar.

Venue : Marwadi Society,Unit 6,  Bhubaneshwar

- Dr Bibudatta Mishra – Bhubaneshwar : email : bhanubibhu68@gmail.com

STAMP EXPO at Chennai

Orgainzer : South India Philatelists’ Association

Date : 25-27 July 2014

Venue : Shiraz Hall, 14 Whannels Road, Egmore, Chennai

Auction

ITS Postal Auction No.65 Last Date 26.7.2014

For more details please contact :

Indian Thematic Society
MIG # 3464, Phase Two, Dugri Rd, Ludhiana – 141 013
Mobile: +91 98728 51244 Phone: +91 161 2521244
http://indianthematicstamps.webs.com/ OR http://itsstampnews.blogspot.com/
Emails: indianthematicsociety@gmail.com OR  surajjaitly@hotmail.com
Scans of some lots are available at http://www.flickr.com/photos/its_offers/

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Stamp on Drupka Lineage by India Post

 

Drukpa Lineage stamp to be released by India Post today

On the occasion of Buddha Poornima, which marks Gautama Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death, the Department of Posts will release a commemorative postage stamp on ‘Drukpa Lineage of Buddhism’ on 14th May 2014.

The Drukpa Kagyu School called either ‘Dugpa’ or ‘Red Hat Sect’, is a branch of the Kagyu School at Tibetan Buddhism, which is considered to be one of the Sarma (new) schools of Tibetan Buddhism.

Within the Drukpa Lineage, there are further sub-schools, most notably the eastern Kham tradition and middle Drukpa School, which existed in Ladakh and surrounding areas. In Bhutan, the Drukpa Lineage is the dominant school and State religion.

The Drukpa Lineage was founded in Western Tibet by Dragon Tsangpa Gyare Yeshe Dorje (1161-1211), a student of Ling Repa, who mastered the Tantric Buddhism practices of mahamudra and six yogas of Naropa at an early age.

 

A World Record for a B’day Present !

How far would you go to surprise your mom on her birthday ? Arvind Kumar Pai has come up with an incredible answer to this query. He just got his mother’s name entered in the Limca Book of Records as a birthday present.

A post card that Arvind Kumar Pai sent from Kochi to his mother, Renjitha Bai, to wish her on her 55th birthday has entered the Limca Book of Records.

The post card has been recognised by the Limca Book of Records for using maximum number of stamps, a total of 322, on an envelope through the Speed Post Service.

“It all began with a thought to mark the 55th birthday of my mom, who stays in Alappuzha, with a special fete,” said Arvind. “My father passed away two years ago and my mom and sister are the only family I have. I thought about making her birthday special. I am not a member of any philately club but had a collection of stamps, including some rare ones. So I thought of putting them to good use,” Arvind Kumar  said.

Arvind pasted the stamps on the envelope in a way that it read ‘Happy Birthday Amma.’ The envelope bearing the stamps worth `79, was sent through India Post, with the permission from Limca Book of World Records, on November 17, 2013.

“Though it may sound quite breezy, the task was not so easy to execute on a 58-cm-long and 44-cm-wide envelope,” said Arvind.

“The difficulty was to fix 322 stamps on an envelope, to read ‘Happy Birthday Amma’. I had to paste as many stamps as possible, so I started searching for extremely rare stamps, like ones with denominations of paise - 2, 5, 15, 25, and 50. To add to the fun, I pasted some scented stamps too,” he said.

The Limca officials took note of the achievement and after seven months to conclude their verification process, on  May 2, 2014, has marked the post as a record in the category of “Human Story” for “most stamps stuck on an envelope.”

For Renjitha Bai, the announcement came as a double delight. Apart from the birthday gift, the post has brought her a world record too.

Also, the whole turn of events was a curious coincidence of crucial dates for the family.

“It was pure coincidence. If you look at it, 322 is my birthday, i.e. March 22. We recieved the intimation from Limca Book of World Records on May 2, which was also my father’s second death anniversary,” said Arvind.

Source : The New Indian Express

Special Cover on Shakespeare’s 450th Birth Anniversary

23 April 2014 marked the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth and was celebrated world wide. A special cover was issued at Bangalore on 23rd April 2014 to mark 450th Birth Anniversary of William Shakespeare with pictorial cancellation of Bangalore Philatelic Bureau. Total quantity issued were 1000 Covers. Out of 1000 covers, 100 each covers cancelled at Mangalore, Myore and Belgaum with cancellations of respective philatelic bureau. Remaining 700 were distributed through Bangalore Philatelic Bureau.

- Sreejesh Krishnan , Trivandrum

My Recent Cover

Cover from Germany

 

Thanks to Mr Wolfgang Beyer, Germany

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New Stamps from Australia

 

150th Anniversary of the birth of  Andrew Barton “Banjo” Paterson

Date of Issue : 13 May 2014

Australia Post  is commemorating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Australian literary great, Andrew Barton “Banjo” Paterson, through a new stamp release acknowledging Banjo’s iconic bush-themed ballads.

This issue features a stamp and coin cover, a stamp and three-medallion cover along with a wonderful prestige booklet featuring a selection of poems by bush balladeer AB "Banjo" Paterson.

The bush ballad is a thread of Australia’s early literary and popular culture, a rhyming, narrative-based poem adapted for singing.

“The Australian bush ballad helped create a mythology of Australia and Australian identity during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and are generally simple stories of swagmen, bushrangers, drovers, shearers, working-class oppression and rural isolation,” Mr Zsolt said.

Banjo Paterson is also one of Australia’s best known folk poets, and popular renditions of his works – such as the film of “The Man from Snowy River” and the use of “Waltzing Matilda” as an unofficial national anthem – have helped carry his ballads across time.

The Bush Ballads stamp release, illustrated by Sydney-based illustrators Jamie and Leanne Tufrey, feature the following Banjo Paterson poetry works:

• Clancy of the Overflow - This well-known poem, published in the Bulletin in December 1889, demonstrates Paterson’s romanticism for bush life.
• The Man from Snowy River - Published in the Bulletin in April 1890, this much-loved tale tells of the pursuit of a prizewinning colt that escaped to run among a herd of brumbies in mountainous country.
• Waltzing Matilda - Written in 1895 to a tune played by Christina Macpherson, this is probably the most famous of all Australian ballads.
• Mulga Bill’s Bicycle - Published in the Sydney Morning Herald in July 1896, this humorous poem was written at the height of the late-19th-century bicycling craze.

The new stamp release commemorating the 150th anniversary of the birth of “Banjo” Paterson (1864-1941) includes a miniature sheet, first day cover, stamp pack, maxicard set of four, booklet of 10 x 70c self-adhesive stamps, roll of 100 x 70c self-adhesive stamps, gutter strip of 10 x 70c stamps with design, prestige booklet, postal and numismatic cover and a medallion cover.

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450th Birth Anniversary of William Shakespeare

 

Date of Issue : 23 April 2014

Croatian Post  has issued a commemorative postage stamp on 23 April 2014 in a sheet of 10 stamps, maximum card (MC), postmark and First Day Cover (FDC) featuring ‘Romeo Juliet’ to commemorate William Shakespeare’s 450th Birth Anniversary.

William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616), the great English writer and the most performed worldwide dramatist whose work has been translated to all languages of the world. His work hasn’t just deeply reverberated in worldwide theatres, but also in other artistic fields such as music, paintings and film. It is assumed that he had written 34 dramas, 154 sonnets and a couple of songs.

His early work was written with exuberant language and lots of humor, focused on political problems or love stories in which he celebrates youth and freedom. Amongst them, the most famous drama is “Romeo and Juliet”, a love story about unhappy lovers from Verona. The beginning of Shakespeare’s mature time of artistic creation was the beginning of the 17th century through which he regenerated European and world literature. Particularly stands out the tragedy “Hamlet” which came along at the end of the Renaissance era, in which he points out the inability of man to exterminate evil.

Thence, “Othello”, “Antony and Cleopatra”, “Macbeth” and “King Lear”, work that reveals the beginning and end of human nature and fate. In his later artistic creation, so called dark comedies or problematic drama arise amongst which the most popular are “Troilus and Cressida” and “Measure for measure”. In these dramas prevails irony and loathing over human levity and villainy and compromise in social lives.

The latest Shakespeare drama brings readers a world filled with ghosts and unusual events, dramatic plots and conflicts are solved in a miraculous and fairy-tale manner, the characters are not realistic, but are more like characters from fairy-tales and folk stories. The end of Shakespeare’s artistic creation is variously graded. One says that the author has exhausted his creative energy, and others say that Shakespeare has greeted the end of his life in calm and forgiving manner and in a visional depiction of life as a dream.

New stamps on Orchids

Date of Issue : 11 April 2014

The colourfulness of spring has once again found its place on postage stamps of the Republic of Croatia. As it has recently issued a souvenir sheet with the motifs of nature on the occasion of the 125^th anniversary of the Botanical Garden in Zagreb, Croatian Post issued on   April, 11^th  new commemorative postage stamps from the long-time series Croatian Flora.  This year three postage stamps are adorned with the motifs of three endemic Croatian orchids. For their beauty, the orchids are often named the queens of spring and the spleen of spring is brought us on stamps by:

Mt. Dinara-orchid (stamp of nominal value of 2.80 HRK) belongs to the most numerous genus Ophrys in Croatian flora. It grows from the middle of May to the end of June on dry lawns, in shrubberies and bright groves. It is spread also in great number of populations

Istrian serapias (stamp of nominal value of 2.80 HRK) Istrian serapias blossoms in May and June on the meadows and in bushes in the south of Istria. By the number of species (about 80) and the density of populations the Istrian peninsula counts among the richest orchid habitats in Europe and the veritable paradise of this lovely flower is in the farthest south of Istria – the Cape Kamenjak.

Liburnian orchid (stamp of nominal value of 3.10 HRK) is an Illyric-Adriatic endemic plant spread on a very small area. It blossoms already in March in small number of habitats along the Croatian coastline, from Istria to Korčula.

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Stamp exhibition on Indian Cinema

All the philatelists and friends are requested   to attend the function on occasion of Actor Sri Shivaram contribution to Kannada Cinema.   There will be a photo exhibition on actor Sri Shivaram and  small philately exhibition on Indian Cinema  on 26th & 27th April  2014 organished by Suchitra Film Society. Banashankari 2nd stage Bangalore .
For more details contact Suchitra film society Phone Number  080 26711785.

- Jagannath Mani, Bangalore

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